Newmarket chef Jamie Mountford says appearing on the BBC’s MasterChef: The Professionals has given him a massive confidence boost.

Jamie, 30, who was eliminated from the show after the ‘skills test’ last night despite impressing the judges, said he was still buzzing.

The senior sous chef at the Bedford Lodge Hotel & Spa said the show had been “the highlight of his career”.

He said the name of his signature dish let him down in the skills test where chefs cook in front of judges Marcus Wareing, Monica Galetti and Gregg Wallace.

“I was the only one who did really well on it,” said Jamie. “I had some good feedback from the judges, but when it came back to the signature dish, the name of it let me down.

“If I had named the dish differently, I could have gone through.”

Jamie, who lives with his fiancee Melissa and son Noah, 1, was one of three contestants eliminated but believes his dad, who died in February, would have been proud.

He said: “I’m buzzing. [The show] was a massive confidence boost for me. The highlight of my career. And I’ve learnt a lot about myself.

“[Applying to the show was] everything to do with my dad. When you lose a loved one you can get really lost in life, you don’t know which way to go and you’re on your own. So I just thought let’s give this a go and make the guy proud.

“I’d applied two years ago and didn’t get through. My dad died in February so I applied again and got it.

“I’m cheesed off that he wasn’t able to see it, but I’m sure I made him proud.”

Jamie said he would like a female to win the TV series in the hope that they inspire more young girls to become chefs.

He said: “I hope that one of the girls wins this year, because I think they’ve done really well considering it’s a really man-dominated industry. They don’t usually have ego and they just go with the flow really.

“It’s a very confrontational industry. You get criticism from every angle. From GPs, customers, fellow chefs, and you’ve got to be really strong to run the kitchen because people can walk all over you and make you take the blame for things.

“There’s also a massive shortage of chefs because there’s not enough wages for the work that you do.

“But it’s also a very exciting industry because you get a lot of praise as well – and people love food.”

Masterchef: The Professionals is a reality show for young chefs in the industry “who want to make it to the top of the culinary world.” It is aired on BBC Two, Tuesdays to Thursdays, at 8pm.